Bituminous dispersions and method of making the same



Patented Aug. 2, 1932 RICHARD W. LEWIS, OF MON TCLAIR, .AND ALBERT SAUNDERS, OF MAPLEVTOOD, NEW JERSEY BITUMINOUS DISPER$IONS AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAT/IE NoDrawing. A plication filed June 4,

This present invention relates to bituminous compositions which are applicable in the arts generally.

More particularly this invention relates to the preparation and use of dispersions of bituminous substances in aqueous media, using as dispersing agents naturally occurring materials known generically as phosphorites or phosphate rock, and including waste-pond phosphates, these materials being used either alone or in combination with insoluble hydrated oxides.

The phosphatic materials suitable for the practice of our invention may be properly clescribed as being more or less impure forms of amorphous calcium phosphate,'andmay containfrom2l% to 90% Ca (POQ They are usually regarded as being 'of'colloidal origin but as having lost through natural processes of alteration many if not all of their colloidal properties. They are however readily obtained or are preparable in a finely divided state and we have found that such powdered phosphates when previously Wetted with water form a highly efficient dispersing agent for effecting dispersions of bitumen in water. Bituminous dispersions so prepared tend to remain in suspension and any sediment which may form is in the form of a soft cake which is readily distributed on simple stirring;

' By suitable variations in the dispersion technique the bitumen may be dispersed into a wide range of useful particlesizes and'dispersions so obtained have the property, when dried, of sufiering little deterioration in'the strength and cohesion of their body through exposure to water or to dilute aqueous reagents.

Dispersions prepared by the'use of these phosphates alone as dispersing agents will, as stated, form on drying, films, or masses, the resistance of whose body to the action of Water is fairly satisfactory." However such dried films may not indefinitely retain under exposure to water their adhesion to certain types of underlying surfaces. This defeet can be remedied, according to our invention, by the use of a compound dispersing agent consisting of a fine paste or powder of 1930. Serial No; 459,259.

natural mineral phosphates in which has been mechanically incorporated a sufficient proportion of an insoluble hydrated oxide, preferably artificially prepared hydrated aluminum oxide. Since the hydrated aluminum oxide is an expensive ingredient usually no more is employed than is necessary to secure the desired degree of resistance in the finished material.

The natural phosphates employed in our invention, when compared with other materials such as clay, which have heretofore been used as dispersing agents for bitumen, possess an unique and valuable combination of advantages. As dispersing agents they are equally efficient or are more eificient than is clay. They are cheap and are readily obtainable in suitable physical form, in any desired quantity andin any desired degree of purity anduniformity. They greatly excel clay in the resistance to water ofiered by the dried dispersions. The discovery, therefore, of their usefulness as dispersing agents for the preparation of dispersions of bitumen-in-water constitutes a new and valuable contribution to the art.

Although dispersons of bitumen-in-water prepared by the use of these natural phosphates alone as dispersing agents will be found valuable and suitable for many applications in the arts generally, and could naturally be used without expensive admixtures whenever possible, dispersions of this type may according to the second feature of our invention, when desired for special purposes, be still further improved by mechanical admixture of insoluble hydrated oxides.

A preferred emulsifying agent for the preparation of bituminous composition which is useful in the arts generally as a waterproofing and protective coating or binding mate rial may comprise, in finely powdered form, such naturally occurring phosphates as Flora ida or Tennessee hard rock phosphate, or soft phosphate, or pebble phosphate, or wastepond phosphate. Other naturally occurring insoluble inorganic phosphates may also be used, but the amorphous calcium phosphates of Florida or Tennessee are at present preferred. 1

,vention there may be taken, say,

For special purposes a second preferred dispersing agent for the preparation of bituminous dispersions useful in the arts generally would comprise a mixture of finely ground natural phosphates as described above together with a substantial proportion of hydrated aluminum oxide. This hydrated aluminum oxide is previously artificially prepared as a gelatinous precipitate which may be used at once or may be carefully dried in such a manner as not to interfere with its chemical hydration and fine state of physical division.

As an example of thelpractice of our in- 200 lbs. of

finely ground naturally occurring insoluble inorganic phosphate. This may be made into a thick paste with 200 lbs. of water more or pending upon the properties desired in the.

. pound of anhydrous material or ash'in the less. To this paste may be added with suitable stirring bitumen in a fluid or semi-fluid state. would result from theaddition of about 1,000 to 10,000lbs. of bitumen to the 200 lbs. of phosphate, but it must be recognized that, depending upon the'purposes for WhiCllthG finished dispersion is to be used, the proportion of bitumen to dispersing agent may be varied within very wide limits, so that from 200 to 10,000 or even more pounds of bitumen might be added to 200 lbs. of this agent, de-

finished composition.

Another preferred of our invention consists in taking one part offinely powdered mineral phosphate,'adding theretosufficient water to make a or thin paste or suspension and then intimately mixing with this first suspension a second suspension containing from one to five parts of gelatinous aluminum hydrate together with a suitable amount of water. The gelatinous aluminum-hydrate may be reckoned as containing'20% A1 (OI-D' With suitable agitation there is added to the dispiersing mixture soprepared,fluid1 or semi-I .fluid bitumen in the proportion of from .1

to or more pounds of bitumen foreach dispersing mixture. v g r In each of these examples by interrupting the addition of bitumen at any predetermined is useful in the arts and which possesses unique and valuable properties which dis tinguish it from a corresponding composition containing the same amount of'bit-umen but obtained by the use of'other dispersing agents heretofore known. Hence, from 1 to 50 or more parts of bitumen per part of anhydrous agent, may be added while the mass is being stirred, the exact amount of bitumen to be I 7 added. being predetermined by the use to which the material is to beput. -More water may be added in such quantity as to obtain theconsistency desired. V

1. Themeth and water.

A particularly useful composition example of the practice thick point there is obtained a composition'w-hi'ch obtained by prac- A batch of composition be obtained while ticing the invention may the ingredients are either cold or hot, de

pending upon the particular bitumen em ployed,'and either as an individual batch or as a moth batch for a subsequent continuous or intermittent process.

We claim: 7

0d of dispersing bitumen in water, comprising mixing bitumen, finely divided mineral phosphate, and water.

.2. The method of dispersing bitumen in water, comprising mixing bitumen, ground mineral phosphate, insoluble hydrated oxide,

Water, comprising the step of "agitating the bitumen together with the waterand "El/(11S persing agent wcomprising ground mineral phosphate. V W r I i 6. The method offdispersing bitumen in Water, bitumen together with water and aidispersing agent" comprising .a-inixture of ground mineralii phosphate and hydrated Yaluminum 0x1 e.-

a 7 In a dispersion of bitumen-in-water, a

dispersing agent comprising finely. divided ground mineral phosphate. I i

y 8. In a'dispersion of bitumenein-water, a dispersing agent comprising a mixture of comprising the step. of agitatng the finely divided groundmineral phosphate and insoluble hydrated oxide.

i .9. In a dispersion of hitumen-in water,

hydrated-aluminum oxide. r 10. vA bituminous dispersion of bitumenin water, comprising water,'bitumen, and 'a dis- 1 'persing agent thereforcomprisingfinely di- 7 V vided ground mineral phosphate. 1 V '11. A bituminous-dispersion of bitumenin film dispersing agent comprising'a mixture of. V finely divided ground mineral phosphate and 7 Water, comprisingwater, bitumen and a disper'sing agent therefor comprising a mixture i of ground mineral phosphate and an insoluble hydratedoxide. I r

' 12. A bituminous dispersion of bitumen.

Water, comprising water, bitumen and a'dispersing agentgtherefor comprising a mixture offinely divided. ground mineral phosphate and hydrated aluminum oxide.

13 A composition of matter containing} dispersed bitumen-and groundmineral phos -phate.

14. A composition of matter containing, when wet, dispersed bitumen, water, ground mineral phosphate and an insoluble hydrated oxide.

15. A composition of matter containing, when wet, dispersed bitumen, water, ground mineral phosphate, and hydrated aluminum oxide.

16. A composition of matter containing, when wet, dispersed bitumen, water and finely divided mineral phosphate.

17 A composition of matter containing finely divided insoluble phosphate, and dispersed bitumen, the proportion of the bitumen being from about one to fifty times the weight of the phosphate.

18. A composition of matter containing one part of finely powdered mineral phosphate, from about one to five parts of gelatinous aluminum hydrate, and from one to fifty or more pounds of dispersed bitumen for each pound of anhydrous material in the composition.

In testimony whereof we hereto afiix our signatures.

RICHARD W. LEWIS. ALBERT SAUNDERS. 

